When it comes to Cuban and Haitian refugees in the late 1970s and early 1980s although they were coming to the United States for different reasons, they were both trying to find freedom from dictatorship in their own countries. Though both Cubans and Haitian arrived around the same time in Florida, in Detention by Design, Episode 5: "The New Immigration Detention System Is Born”, Wenski stated, “Because African American communities saw that the Cubans were getting kind of a favored migration status and the Haitians were not” (55). This is important since episode 4: "Mariel Boatlift: The Tide Turns” also states something similar about how Cubans were released quickly while Haitians still had to serve a longer period of time. This shows how differently …show more content…
One of the similarities these refugees had in common was that their presidents were dictators. Episode 4: "Mariel Boatlift: The Tide Turns" states that, “Tejero says the moment he spoke those words came to the retribution. Cuba, like Haiti, was a one-party country. If you went against the revolutionary government, you were put on a blacklist” (32). Shows that in Cuba there was a dictatorship, and none was able to say otherwise. Also, episode 5: "The New Immigration Detention System Is Born" mentions that “the number of Haitians – begins to skyrocket. Haitians fleeing the Duvalier dictators” (46). Another thing was that many of the refugees from both countries died while coming to Florida in their boats and rafts. Episode 5: "The New Immigration Detention System Is Born" states that, “a lot of boats that ended up coming, sank, and a lot of Haitians ended up dying trying to get to Florida” (46). And in Episode 4: "Mariel Boatlift: The Tide Turns” also states something similar how “a lot of boats still made their way to Cuba to bring friends and family back to the U.S. Many of them ended up sinking and an unknown number of people drowned” (35). Refugees from both countries had many people die while trying to come to Florida though Cuba did receive some help from the US after a
The Mariel Boatlift Through the Eyes of Tony Montana The Mariel boatlift was the immigration of over 125,000 Cuban political refugees to Southern Florida from Port of Mariel, Cuba between April 15 and October 31, 1980. This major event gave Cubans the opportunity to escape the atrocities of communism put in place by dictator Fidel Castro and in some cases, join their relatives who had previously immigrated to the U.S. Yet, it soon became apparent to American President Jimmy Carter that Castro used the Mariel boatlift as an opportunity to empty Cuban jails and mental health institutions.
It is important to note that for at least one decade prior to the Mariel Boatlift, the city of Miami was the most immigrant heavy city in the United States; 35% of the population was immigrants. This number increased after the boatlift because of the political and economic landscape of Cuba during this time. That being said, Cubans and Hispanics sought refuge in the United States. Conveniently, Miami was their closest stop.
During the early 1960’s many Cubans fled to the United States not because they wanted a better life, but because they were fleeing from the hardships put on them by Fidel Castro. According to Maria Garcia in Havana USA, there were three major waves of Cubans arriving in the United States. The first was after the revolution from 1959 to 1962, the second was during the “freedom fights” from 1965 to 1962, and the third was the “Mariel boatlift” in 1980. Many of the Cubans from these waves settled in Miami, Florida because of the similarities it has to Cuba. Miami was an easy transition for most of the Cubans looking for a new home until they could return to Cuba.
Since the 1960s to even present day, Cuban exiles have been making their way
In her book From Cuba with Love, Megan Daigle dives into the nexus of sex, money, and deprivation in Cuba following the fall of the Soviet Union and the tightening of the U.S. embargo in the early 1990s as it deals with “jineterismo,” the local practice of pursuing relationships with foreigners in order to gain access to hard currency. With the end of the Soviet Union, Cuba was stripped of its primary source of financial and political support, quickly sending Cuba into an economic crisis that its government called “el Periodo especial en tiempo de paz” or the Special Period in Peacetime. “Seeming overnight, the Cuban economy collapsed by 40 percent” (4). To make matters worse this was the same time the United States solidified its embargo on
In that same chapter, it also mentions, “It was not until early in the 196os that Miami emerged as the premier Cuban community in the United States. Throughout the history of the Cuban presence in this country, Miami, largely because of its youth and economic structure, was never the principal destination of Cuban immigrants” (Perez 84). Cubans had a diversity that helped them grow into this big community that supported each other. In the end, Cubans were able to easily settle down, while Haitians had a hard time after years of getting support and being able to open their first-ever
He noted that refugee resettlement became crucial after World War II when hundreds of thousands of civilians fled their countries in Europe. Also, thousands of Cuban children were sent to the US after the Cuban Revolution. America was part of resettling these refugees during these times. America has launched numerous refugee programs since World War II like the Displaced Persons Act in 1948, the Indochina Migration and Refugee Assistance Act of 1975, and the Refugee Act of 1980. These historical significances give the reader confidence in America that America did not overlook the issue and did not just watch people losing their lives due to the displacement of their homes.
The Refugee Act of 1980 put into place policies for refugees. It would redefine what a "refugee" was to agree with the United Nations norms. An objective for around 50 thousand for refugee immigrants was set around 50,000 while worldwide immigrant quota was reduced to 270,000 annually. Six years later the Immigration Reform and Control Act (IRCA) was passed. This Act created penalties for employers who, knowing hired illegal immigrants.
Louis and Josef could not get into Cuba as the Cuban government declined them. In the text, Captain Shrouder had said that he had just gone to see President Bru so that they could disembark but instead of accepting them, he said that they must leave the harbor by tomorrow. In addition, this relates to the main argument as it shows how Captain Shrouder actually went to negotiate with the president but he rejected them, proving how Josef was not allowed into Cuba. The protagonist, the refugees, are opposing the Cuban government, the antagonist, making the government the society and the refugees the characters. Furthermore, the text also stated that Officer Pedron said that Evelyn and Renata could leave because they had the “right” papers, papers being visas.
The documentary Black in Latin America Haiti and the Dominican Republic: The Roots of Division talks about the same issues as the article The Dominican Republic 's mass Haitian deportation reflects its racist history. In the Dominican Republic, most residents are in denial of being black while in Haiti their black ancestry is embraced. The film says, at around 14:57, that once Dominicans were freed from Haitian rule that they rejected Haitian culture. They no longer wanted anything to do with Haitians, as they believed they were different. This anti-Haitian belief was even taught in schools until the 1960’s.
About 5,000 migrants from Cuba were stranded in Central America after trying to reach United States. Fortunately, the President of Costa Rica, Luis Guillermo, allowed the immigrants to stay in his country. According to CNN, it has been a month since the Cubans were left stranded in Central America because Nicaragua and Guatemala didn’t allowed them to cross their countries. They were all staying in a refugee camp provided by the government as well as giving them their foods and drinks in San Ramon.
Even though Haiti’s a poor country, his people have a big heart. Parents don’t want their child to work, they make them focus on school only, and their education. On the other hand, Americans just consider a child to be lazy if at their teenage age they still don’t work. They raise their children to be independent different from Haitian that make their children to depend on them. Another fact is that Americans are not really friendly; they avoid contact with people, and they have a hypocrite smile on their face, however, Haitians are really friendly, sincere, and courteous.
Our wet foot/dry foot policy allows us to repatriate Cuban refugees if we
United States has been granting protection to individuals who are seeking asylum because they are fleeing for persecution. The modern refugee regime is applied in United States and it is the product of the second half of the twentieth century. This regime came because of the aftermath of World War II and all the years that came after it. The applications for refugee from individuals from Central American countries like: Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador, etc. have increased in Costa Rica, Canada, Mexico, and in United States.
Nothing changed things got worse and worse and worse. Cuba remained the same as it did earlier with Batista; a poor country in debt whose livelihood depends on sugar production. At first the United